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exercise

We live in the Pacific Northwest and as such, winter brings very little snow, but an absolute TON of rain and gray. Last year we managed pretty well as our little guy wasn’t terribly mobile, or at least didn’t require a large expanse in order to wear himself down. This winter promises to be different. VERY different. Thus far he’s occupied himself before bath time by running from the front deck window through the living room, dining room and kitchen over and over. While this does seem to tire him out, it reminds me of the monotony of a hamster wheel and I can’t bear to condemn him to that all season.

At this point I’m looking at a combination of numbers 2, 3 and 4
Coordinating activities elsewhere certainly seems like a good way to burn off energy, do it in a warm, dry environment and get the little guy playing with new friends (and allowing his mother and I to meet new people in the neighbourhood as well). My only pause with this relates to getting myself organized and learning what the city has to offer someone of his age, and coordinating this after childcare and between meals, bath time and sleep. Just writing it has me thinking it will easily tire him out, as it will us.

Ignore the rain and get outside anyway. This has been our weekend approach given a number of small parks in the area, well-groomed woods and a beach / seawall easily accessible. The challenge here being that someone of his age does not care about waterproofing or hypothermia which leads to attempts to launch himself into rather deep puddles despite being deep in the woods and only halfway through the walk. Good times, and requiring of planning for the unforeseen with additional backups boots, clothes etc on hand.

Have friends over. This one seemed to be the easiest and most obvious, but also the one that hasn’t come together cleanly at all. Short of quick visits on the way home from day care we’ve found challenges with coordinating with parents who have their own commitments in the evening, dinners planned and so forth. With post-day care pickups occurring at roughly 5pm that gives a short window before dinner followed by a short window between dinner and bath time. Add to this coordination across families and you can understand the challenges.

I would LOVE to hear how some other folk out there coordinate their weekdays and weekends in order to allow for playtime in the evenings with others as well as ensure appropriate, safe exercise / exhaustion before bed

Worried your beautiful little baby will get hooked on Wii or PS3 before she even learns to walk? I`m willing to bet your concern is not misplaced. Kids are getting fatter and video games are getting more addictive. Couches? Well couches are just as comfy as they’ve always been.

The kids over at Bikeforest.com have an interesting solution with a custom project they’ve designed and proven – their couch bike. This is no temperamental prototype folks.. this is the real deal as far as chain-driven couches are concerned.

If you find yourself in south western Ontario look them up and spring for a few of the strangest rentals you and your kids are likely to encounter during this lifetime.